Antidepressant Discontinuation in Treatment Resistant Depression

August 16, 2023 updated by: Rifaat S. El-Mallakh, University of Louisville
The purpose of this study is to compare the effects on depressive symptoms of subjects who discontinue serotonergic antidepressants (a certain type of antidepressant, such as Prozac, that works on serotonin receptors in the brain) with the effects on depressive symptoms of subjects who continue to take serotonergic antidepressants. During this study, subjects will also be presented with the opportunity to undergo genetic testing for the serotonin gene transporter which has a short or long form. This is being done because it has been demonstrated that genetic testing improves outcome while treating treatment-resistant depression.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
30

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Kentucky
      • Louisville, Kentucky, United States, 40202
        • Recruiting
        • University of Louisville, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Rif S. El-Mallakh, MD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Ziad A. Ali, MD
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 70 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Subjects must be a man or woman 18 to 70 years of age, inclusive.
  • Subject must meet criteria for a major depressive disorder as confirmed by the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview [MINI].
  • Subjects must have a current Treatment-Resistant Depression as defined below.
  • Subjects must have been taking serotonergic antidepressants (serotonin reuptake inhibitor or monoamine oxidase inhibitor) for at least 2 years but not more than 4 years, and have failed 2 previous medication trial for the current episode. Current Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale [MADRS] score must be equal to or more than 25.
  • Subject must be medically stable.
  • Female subjects must have a negative urine pregnancy test at screening, and agree to avoid pregnancy during the study.
  • Each subject must sign an informed consent form indicating that he/she understands the purpose of the study and the procedures required and are willing to participate in the study.
  • Subject must be able to participate in symptom measurement.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Subject has a current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 [DSM-5] diagnosis of bipolar disorder or has a positive screening for bipolar disorder by Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview [MINI] or Mood Disorder Questionnaire [MDQ].
  • Subject has a current DSM-5 diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, autistic disorder, or intellectual disability.
  • Subject has a substance use disorder (except for nicotine or cannabis) within 3 months prior to screening or has a positive drug screen test for any recreational drugs at the time of screening with the exception of Cannabis.
  • Subject has evidence of any clinically significant, unstable medical problems that may create a safety risk for a subject, interfere with study participation, or make results difficult to interpret.
  • Subject is at imminent risk of suicide according to the investigator's clinical judgment and/or a Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) 3 or more at any time in the study.
  • Subject is a woman who is pregnant, breast-feeding or planning to become pregnant while enrolled in the study.
  • Subject has any condition (according to the investigator) for which participation will not be the best interest for the subject or it can prevent, limit or confound the protocol-specified assessments.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: Discontinuation arm
This group will be discontinued from serotonergic antidepressants and shifting them to other categories of antidepressants, i.e., medications that work through dopamine or nor-epinephrine, or by reducing the serotonin signal rather than increasing synaptic serotonin, as might be accomplished with low dose, sub-anti-psychotic doses of some second-generation anti-psychotics.
Other: Discontinuation of serotonergic antidepressants
Discontinuation of serotonergic antidepressants and possibly shift to other antidepressant categories that were proven to be effective in treating depression such as pramipexole, bupropion, quetiapine, lurasidone, brexpipazole. Additionally, subjects will have access to other treatment measures of treating treatment resistant depression.
Active Comparator: Continuation arm
This group will continue taking serotonergic antidepressants which is the standard care of treatment.
Other: Continuation of serotonergic medications
Continuation of serotonergic medications which is the standard care of treatment. Additionally, subjects will have access to other treatment measures of treating treatment resistant depression.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Comparing the difference of response as measured by the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale [MADRS] between both arms.
Time Frame: From baseline and every visit [every 4 weeks] to the end of the study. [6 months]
The MADRS is a psychiatric scale to assess the depressive symptoms from the patient's prospective. The final score ranges from 0 to 60 with 0 indicating no depression and higher scores indicating greater depression. The final scores will be evaluated with a non-paired, two-tailed t-test.
From baseline and every visit [every 4 weeks] to the end of the study. [6 months]
Comparing the difference of response as measured by the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale [MADRS] between subjects with low expressing alleles and high expressing alleles of the serotonin gene transporter.
Time Frame: End of study [6 months].
Genetic testing for the serotonin transporter gene will be done for every patient in the study. All subjects with homozygous and heterozygous low expression alleles will be combined as one group, and all high expression subjects will be the other group. One-way ANOVAs will be conducted for each genotype group, with genotype group as the independent variable (IV) and MADRS scores as the dependent variables (DV).
End of study [6 months].

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Evaluating changes in levels of anxiety as measured by the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale [HAM-A] between both arms.
Time Frame: From baseline and every visit [every 4 weeks] to the end of the study. [6 months]
The HAM-A will be collected to assess changes in anxiety levels from the patient's prospective. It ranges from 0 to 56 with greater scores indicating more anxiety. The final scores will be evaluated with a non-paired, two-tailed t-test.
From baseline and every visit [every 4 weeks] to the end of the study. [6 months]
Evaluating the difference of response as measured by the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale [C-SSRS] between both arms.
Time Frame: From baseline and every visit [every 4 weeks] to the end of the study. [6 months]
The C-SSRS is a psychiatric scale to assess suicidality. It ranges from 0 to 5 with 0 indicating no suicidal ideas and higher scores indicating greater suicidal ideas. The final scores will be evaluated with a non-paired, two-tailed t-test.
From baseline and every visit [every 4 weeks] to the end of the study. [6 months]

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Louisville

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Rifaat S. El-Mallakh, MD, University of Louisville, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 20, 2019

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
December 1, 2024

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 1, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
December 18, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
December 23, 2018

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
December 26, 2018

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
August 18, 2023

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 16, 2023

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
August 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 18.1351

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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